Sport

Parchment suffers strained ankle

THE good news for 110m hurdles national record holder Hansle Parchment is that there are no broken bones or ligament damage coming out of his accident while warming up on the Stadium East track on Saturday, prior to the final at the JAAA/Supreme Ventures National Senior Trials, the Jamaica Observer has been told.

Fitz Coleman, Parchment's coach, told the Observer yesterday that while there were no broken bones or significant ligament damage in his left ankle as was initially feared, the athlete will miss significant time as he recuperates.

Coleman, who guided Parchment to an Olympic bronze medal in London last year and a world leading 13.05-second clocking, said X-rays done to the athlete's ankle at the University Hospital of the West Indies on Saturday showed "significant strain" in the area.

Parchment injured his ankle while warming up for the final on Saturday and at least one fellow competitor, Andrew Riley, who eventually won the race, blamed the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), saying there was not sufficient lighting in the area where they were warming up.

Coleman stayed away from laying any blame when he spoke to the Observer yesterday, saying the situation was "very, very unfortunate", but that injuries are part of the sport of track and field.

He did say there were lights on in the complex, but at the area where the athletes were doing their starts, the lighting was not very good.

As far as Parchment was concerned, Coleman said the athlete's recovery would "depend on how well he responds to the treatment". He added: "We at the University (of the West Indies-Mona) will be doing our level best to ensure he gets the very best treatment available."

But the coach cautioned that he could not be specific as to when the athlete would be able to get back to full training, so he was hoping for the best.

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